Alternative sites for a national garden for Scotland are being sought in Perthshire after a £40m plan had to be abandoned.

Scotland's Garden Trust had to ditch its Cherrybank proposals after the Big Lottery turned down its £25m funding application.

The rejection also puts the future of the existing gardens at the site near Perth in doubt.

A consultation is under way with the trust's 14 full and part-time staff.

Dr Andrew Cubie, chairman of Scotland's Garden Trust said: "It is hugely disappointing that such a visionary and beneficial proposal has been turned down.

"We have explored every avenue to allow us to continue with the project at Cherrybank but, extremely regrettably, we are being forced to examine all our options and are currently actively exploring whether we can relocate to another site in Perthshire."

The Cherrybank Centre in Perth was gifted by Diageo to Scotland's Garden Trust in 2003 for the purpose of developing the national garden.

Cherrybank and the six-acre Heather Garden, which was originally part of Diageo's Bell's office complex, were to be incorporated in the 61-acre Calyx garden site.

Alternative site

Dr Cubie said: "The majority of the 61 acres was to be leased over 125 years, but this was dependent upon lottery funding and the lease options are now no longer available to us.

"If the project is to proceed, we now require to find an alternative site and are currently exploring every possible avenue to create this important project."

The trust's chief executive Peter Fairlie said: "The team at Cherrybank have been outstanding and it's extremely disappointing to everyone involved that without the lottery funding this site isn't viable.

"Our team were all looking forward so much to the Calyx becoming a reality and had enormous energy and enthusiasm for the project at the Cherrybank site.

"We will now be harnessing that energy to finding an alternative site in Perthshire."